Official site of Dr. Teruo Higa's EM Technology™
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日本語
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The Third Chapter of My Life

I think there are three stages in our lives. The first stage is when we are students and we have lofty ambitions, the second chapter is when we work very hard to participate in and support the economy and society with our entire being. After we retire, then the third stage arrives to wrap up the final chapter of our lives.

I realize that I've begun this third stage of my life, which I've been longing for, at the same time that the EM™ informational magazine, Eco Pure, has changed to a digital, online format.

When I was in 5th grade I thought there was nothing more valuable in the world than to become a farmer and I made up my mind to either become a farmer or an agricultural leader in the future. Since then I have totally dedicated my life to the agricultural field.

And as a result, I discovered and developed EM™, Effective Microorganisms™. When I was a professor at the University of the Ryukyus I accepted as many students as I could and I followed up with all the graduates after they got jobs. 100% of my students got jobs after they graduated. Some of them are teaching at agriculture high schools, and there is one former student of mine who became the head of agriculture, forestry and fisheries in Okinawa Prefecture. There can be no greater joy for a teacher than to have students like these.

Although I went through a harsh period when EM™ was bashed by others, EM Technology™ is valued highly now, and just as I pledged publicly in the beginning, it has become indispensable not just in Japan but throughout the world to help solve chronic human problems. Thus, the second chapter of my life has been very successful and I should be happy, but I feel that it is far from original vision I had for the future of Okinawan agriculture. For this reason I need to carry on my original vision into the third chapter of my life.

Agriculture is Once Again the "Foundation of Our Nation"

My great chance came after I retired from the University of Ryukyus on March 31st, 2007. As of April 1st I became a professor of Meio University in Nago City and head of its International EM Research Center. This University was founded to develop the northern region of Okinawa where I grew up. On top of my EM™ activities I became involved in the development of industry and the Wellness Island Initiative starting in the northern area of Okinawa.

When I was a professor at the University of Ryukyus, I had to concentrate on my field of academic expertise and I hesitated to promote EM Technology™ as much as I would have liked to. But now I can plunge into many concrete, practical EM Technology™ projects.

The first thing I did was start my own EM™ model farm a year and a half ago, which is open to the public. Now I have healthy banana trees loaded with 70 to 80 bunches of bananas, and the vegetables and the flowers are also very healthy and vibrant.

This result is a crop worth $20,000-$30,000 per 0.247 acre. If EM Technology™ is employed to the utmost this will become an even better model farm. The fertilizer for my farm is food waste, recycled paper, various kinds of organic waste, and it is a good example of an organic, safe, low cost, high quality farm.

My second goal is to train EM™ pilot farms throughout Okinawa. There are already over 30 people who applied to this program, and I expect the number to reach over 100 within this year. Since I became a professor at the University of Ryukyus, I've repeatedly expressed my idea that we should change to technology-intensive agriculture in order to reach the goal of 5 billion dollars in agricultural production in Okinawa. Currently, it is stagnant at around 1 billion dollars. I would like to make this increased production a reality.

My third goal is to establish, in three years, the International EM Technology Department of Meio University and train advanced experts who can promote EM Technology™. At present they have three courses concerning EM™ and students can obtain 6 credits even if they belong to other departments. There is also an EM™ club, and students who join it will definitely have a chance to become EM™ experts.

They say that it is very difficult for Okinawa to be economically independent, however if we can intensify the use of EM Technology™ this should not prove difficult. If we can increase agricultural production by a factor of 5, to 5 billion dollars, Okinawa will become the most wealthy and desirable prefecture to live in Japan. The commonsense viewpoint is that it is almost impossible to raise agricultural production even 1.5 times, but I would like to make an increase of five times the goal of the third stage of my life.

This page courtesy of

Profile:
Teruo Higa. Born in Okinawa Prefecture in 1941. The developer of EM™. Professor Emeritus of The University of the Ryukyus. Professor of Meio University and head of the International EM Research Center. President of Asia-Pacific Natural Agriculture Network (APNAN), Director of International Nature Farming Research Center (INFRC), Director of Earth Environment and Co-Existence Network-NPO, Chairman of Evaluation Committee for the National contest of Flowers in City Development and Constructions. (Japan's Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries and Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport-advocated project). Major publications: An Earth Saving Revolution vol 1 & 2 and Our Future Reborn (Sun Mark Publishing), EM Medical Revolution and New Century-EM Environmental Revolution (Sogo Unicom Publishing), Use of Microorganisms in Agriculture & Their Positive Effects on Environmental Safety (Nobunkyo Publishing) and others.

Dr. Higa took an uncultivated plot of approximately 0.37 acre and by himself has grown bananas and vegetables on it. He used EM™ entirely, not tilling it or relying on conventional methods of farming, and has taken an abandoned filed of land and made productive and green.

Visitors to Dr. Higa's garden.

Meio University, founded in 1994

Dr. Higa planted 180 cherry trees (both Kawatsu and Himalayan varieties) on the campus of Meio University because the name of the university contains the Chinese character for cherry blossom.